The Wild Bunch (1969) (2024)

Popular reviews

• Review by demi adejuyigbe 3

  incredible action sequences and editing. made me feel terrible in my gut from start to finish. horses do not know they are in a movie

• Review by Patrick Willems ★★★★ 8

  Lots of quality squibs in this one

• Review by SilentDawn ★★★★★ 19

  Part 1 of Catchin' up on Westerns

  The clashing cathartic depths of violence in Sam Peckinpah's The Wild Bunch eventually settles into the aftermath of rage and personal selfishness. Never have I seen such carnage celebrated and relished in until the buzzards fly in and the women come out to pray. Every character is battling the slowly-fading lifestyle of their bravado nature, and Peckinpah lets every character dwell not in nostalgia but in remembrance. The final 15 minutes lets loose in its purity and its depravity, but in an honest way that recalls why such stories are told.

  I usually don't care for westerns, but this was just incredible.

• Review by Nakul ★★★★ 3

  Aging outlaws out for the last score before it's over & coming to the realization that the world is moving on without them. Sam Peckinpah’s controversial, melancholic & ultra-violet western, The Wild Bunch takes place at the end of the era, serving as his own Western swan song. With its unflinching depictions of brutalities, the last minutes are glorious.

• Review by Josh Lewis ★★★★★ 1

  Casualties of war. Nowhere left to go. Back to work.

• Review by matt lynch ★★★★★

  "This time we do it right."

• Review by Darren Carver-Balsiger ★★★½ 39

  Let's talk nihilism. Philosophically I generally subscribe to the nihilist principle that life has no meaning. I'm also pessimistic and deeply cynical. However nihilism is not a justification for immorality. The Wild Bunchseems to miss this. It presents a world without hope or redemption, just harsh temporary survival leading to an inevitable death. Where the film missteps for me is that it replaces the nihilistic setup with a hedonistic tone, revelling in the violence to play things as a macho male fantasy. The Wild Bunchis openly sadistic in its prolonged violent sections. The storytelling is both misogynist and racist, without reason. There's also clear animal abuse, especially regarding horses. Although always unforgivable, such mistreatment doesn't always ruin art for me.…

• Review by manilazic ★★★★

  Guys being dudes

• Review by Paul Elliott ★★★★★

  The Wild Bunch is an American western classic, and a must-see for any moviegoer. Its brutal, uncompromising nature puts it in the same echelon as classics such as The Godfather and Apocalypse Now.Directed by Sam Peckinpah, the film follows a gang of outlaws on their moral decline as local authorities pursue them. Peckinpah masterfully crafts his characters and story, carefully blending themes of mortality, loyalty and the effects of violence.The performances of William Holden, Ernest Borgnine and Robert Ryan capture the desperation of the outlaws' situation and the desperation of their loyalty to one another. This is complemented by a timeless score and stunning cinematography which vividly captures the desolation of the desert Southwest.The Wild Bunch is Peckinpah's finest achievement and has gone on to inspire generations of filmmakers, providing an invaluable insight into a time and place long forgotten. Essential viewing and a classic in every sense of the word.

• Review by Paul Schrader 35

  I'm producing a remake of The Wild Bunch starring Mel Gibson, Charlie Sheen, Randy Quaid and Gary Busey. I've found my writer, David Mamet. Now I'm looking for a director. Any suggestions?

• Review by 𝙿𝚊𝚘𝚕𝚘 𝙼𝚊𝚌𝙶𝚞𝚏𝚏𝚒𝚗 | 🇮🇹 ★★★★½ 6

  This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

  Two extraordinary action scenes - opening and ending - enclose the narrative of The Wild Bunch. In fact, the film opens with a furious shooting and ends with a shocking carnage. In between, assassinations, destruction, betrayal, torture and looting follow one another with the intention of offering the rawest and most elaborate description of violence ever seen on screen. Although already two years before Bonnie and Clyde had indicated the way for a different treatment of the themes of death and physical violence, it is precisely The Wild Bunch that fully welcome these new visual coordinates. Sam Peckinpah perfectly blends the atrocity of the bloodiest scenes with a tale that abandons that Manichaeism - good on the one hand, bad…

• Review by DIREKTIONZ ★★★ 9

  I’m angry at myself, I really am. When I bought this a time ago this was my most anticipated film, by far. Look, I see the greatness in this, and I can live with the knowledge that I’m just a hack that doesn’t appreciate the admittedly insane action-scenes and violence, but there’s no single character I rooted for in this film. Barely any character progressions, barely any character arcs, barely any reason to make me care or emotionally invested. And like some who read my “reviews” know already I couldn’t be more a fan of emotions in movies.

  The story in The Wild Bunch is incredibly complex, in a good way, and I could see myself calling this a favorite…